When flowers meet paper: Youth revitalizes 400-year-old craft

Around the world, people integrate natural plants into daily art and creation. In Huamao Village in southwest China's Guizhou Province, a time-honored local craft gains a modern twist through youthful creativity. With a history of over 400 years, traditional handmade paper-making once faced limited application and shrinking market demand amid industrialized paper production.

Now, a new generation of returning youth is bridging tradition and modernity for the intangible cultural heritage. Unlike the previous single product lineup of notebooks and round fans, young inheritors have launched a series of trendy cultural and creative items, including paper-made night lights, fridge magnets and keychains. By embedding real flowers and leaves into handmade paper, they turn ancient craftsmanship into lifestyle products favored by young audiences.

The participation of young people serves as a vital link in heritage inheritance. They inject vitality into age-old folk techniques, expand the influence of traditional craftsmanship through modern aesthetics and market thinking, and let time-honored Chinese intangible culture integrate into contemporary life and gain global appeal.

(This story is produced by journalism students from Peking University: He Hongyu, Zhang Xinyi, Chen Yilin, Ma Xuan, and Li Xinyu)